College Football Corner: Aggies are no joke while Navy, JMU and UVA get serious

Texas and Texas A&M have enjoyed a longstanding rivalry that includes Longhorn fans spreading “Aggie jokes” that make sport of the school, students, and fan base in College Station. My favorite remains: “How many Aggie Jokes are there? Three — the rest are true.”

It seemed time to crank out a new round of Aggie jokes on Saturday, as No. 3 Texas A&M trailed South Carolina — a school that had lost four straight and six of seven — by the score of 30-3 at halftime. Their friends in Austin were yukking it up, only to see the Aggies rally to win 31-30, stay unbeaten and remain in control of their path to the SEC Championship and College Football Playoff.

Texas fans then had to see their team go out and get smoked by No. 5 Georgia 35-10, to all but drop out of playoff contention. The two schools play in the regular season finale but for now the joke is on Texas, who once again “is back” — if that means disappointing their fan base.

Navy (8-2, 6-1 American) celebrated Senior Day in Annapolis by outscoring No. 25 South Florida 41-38. It was junior quarterback Braxton Woodson who came off the bench to score a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns as the Mids finish unbeaten at home for the first time since 2019. They also snap a two-game slide and remain in contention for the Conference Championship Game.

Midshipman Medals: Alex Tecza rushes for 126 yards and a touchdown while making a TD catch. Woodson finishes with 103 yards rushing and his scoring runs were 20 and 64 yards. Phillip Hamilton recorded an interception while also recovering an onside kick in the fourth. Jacob Carlson’s 66-yard punt pinned the Bulls and set up a short field for a Navy TD.

Midshipman Miscues: The offense converted 5-14 third downs. The defense allowed over 30 points for the sixth straight game. Committing seven penalties for 65 yards is not ideal.

Next: Thanksgiving night against 7-3 Memphis at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN.

Maryland (4-6, 1-6 Big Ten) produced a field goal on their opening drive at Illinois and faced a fourth and one at midfield on their second possession, only to have Nolan Ray be stopped for no gain. The Illini drove for a go-ahead touchdown and led the rest of the way, as the 24-6 loss puts the Terps on the precipice of postseason elimination.

Terrapin Triumphs: Freshman running back DeJuan Williams led the team in rushing (43 yards) and receiving (eight catches). Lavain Scruggs tallied 11 tackles to pace the defense. There were no injuries like the one Pharrel Payne suffered during the men’s basketball game at Marquette.

Terrapin Troubles: One week after posting 305 yards rushing, the offense reverted to form by managing just 55 yards on the ground while converting 3-12 third downs. Meanwhile, the Illini moved the chains on 7-13 attempts.

Next: Saturday at 4 p.m. against No. 18 Michigan (8-2) on BTN.

No. 20 Virginia (9-2, 6-1 ACC) shook off last week’s loss to Wake Forest, as well as questions surrounding the injury status of quarterback Chandler Morris — the senior quarterback directed a touchdown drive on their first possession at Duke, and then they closed the first half with a touchdown and a field goal on their last two drives on their way to a 34-17 victory over the Blue Devils. The victory puts them one win, plus help, away from their first ACC Championship Game since 2019.

Cavalier Congrats: Morris threw for 316 yards and two touchdowns, J’Mari Taylor rushed for 133 yards and two scores and Trell Harris tallied eight catches for 161 yards and a TD. The ACC’s best team on third down converted 12-19 attempts, while holding the Blue Devils to 4-15 on the money down. Fisher Carmac notched two sacks.

Cavalier Concerns: Two turnovers (both interceptions) keep this one from being perfect, and even though they have the next week off, the ghosts of their series with Virginia Tech (1-19 as conference foes) will haunt them until Thanksgiving weekend.

Next: Nov. 29 against 3-7 Virginia Tech.

No. 24 James Madison (9-1, 7-0 Sun Belt) had their eye on the Navy-South Florida game, as the Bulls were one spot ahead of JMU for the final automatic bid in the College Football Playoff last week. But they also had their eye on App State and dismantled the Mountaineers 58-10. Coastal Carolina’s loss to Georgia Southern wraps up the East Division for the Dukes, who will play for their first Sun Belt Conference championship in three weeks.

Duke Do’s: Alonza Barnett III threw for 303 yards while Wayne Knight rushed for 94 yards and a score. Jobi Malary came off the bench to produce 105 yards rushing and three touchdowns. The defense dominated, holding App State to 1-12 on third down and one net yard rushing.

Duke Don’ts: Seven penalties for 74 yards and Patrick Rea averaging 36.5 yards per punt are the visible blemishes.

Next: Saturday against 5-5 Washington State.

Virginia Tech (3-7, 2-4 ACC) had multiple windows of opportunity at Florida State, but began the night by throwing an interception and missing a field goal on their first two possessions. They still trailed 10-7 at the half before the Seminoles scored touchdowns on their first three drives after intermission. But the big news in Blacksburg is that former Penn State coach James Franklin is the proverbial leader in the clubhouse to take over the program in the offseason.

Hokie Highlights: Marcellous Hawkins rushes for 101 yards while the offense converted 8-12 third downs. Caleb Woodson posted eight tackles.

Hokie Humblings: Too many miscues offensively and unfortunately the defense bent and broke after intermission. They also committed eight penalties for 59 yards.

Next: Saturday against No. 16 Miami (8-2) at noon on ESPN.